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Winter FAQs

How soon do residents/businesses need to remove ice and snow from sidewalks?

Ice needs to be removed within 6 hours from the time it forms, per City Ordinance. Snow needs to be removed within 12 hours after snow stops falling during the day and before 1pm if it snowed during the night, per City Ordinance.

Public Works and the Traffic Department work together to enforce this Ordinance. Parking Control Officers in the Traffic Department conduct enforcement on priority pedestrian routes throughout the winter, and Public Works Compliance Officers investigate all complaints received of uncleared sidewalk.

The fine for failing to comply with the City’s sidewalk clearance ordinances is $50/day for each day of non-compliance. Even if you aren’t around, it is your responsibility to ensure someone clears sidewalks and ramps next to your property.

We all have a shared responsibility for keeping our community safe and accessible during winter weather. For you, your neighbors, people with strollers or using wheelchairs, and the many people in Cambridge who walk, please do your part.

What does a "cleared" sidewalk look like?

We all have a shared responsibility for keeping our community safe and accessible during winter weather. How to be sure you are in compliance with the City's Snow and Ice Removal Ordinance:

Shovel your sidewalk on all sides of your property, down to bare pavement

Clear snow to curb so that collection crews can access your trash barrels and recycling toters and they are not behind snow banks.

Clear ramps at corners and crosswalks.

Stock up on ice melter before a storm. Use ice melter with calcium chloride (CaCl2), which is the best choice for the environment and only a small amount is required to melt ice. Potassium chloride (KCl) is okay, too. Avoid rock salt (NaCl or sodium chloride), which kills plants and trees.

Do not use sand. It doesn’t help pedestrians; but it makes hard ice more slippery. It gets into street drains and is expensive to clean up in the spring.

Remember that, for people on foot, ice can be worse then snow. It can cause dangerous falls. You are as responsible for ice as you are for snow.

Consider helping neighbors who may have difficulty clearing their walk. Remember: pedestrians need safe, clear sidewalks all year long, so be mindful of anything—hedges, trees, parked cars— that obstructs their path of travel. Keeping sidewalks passable is the neighborly thing to do, and it’s the law.

The fine for failing to comply with the City’s sidewalk clearance ordinances is $50/day for each day of non-compliance. Even if you aren’t around, it is your responsibility to ensure someone clears sidewalks and ramps next to your property.

See below for examples:

Not in Compliance

In Compliance

Am I required to clear my sidewalk if I am elderly and/or have a disability?

If you are a homeowner on a low income and/or you are elderly or have a disability, you may qualify for the City’s Snow Exemption Program, in which case the City will shovel your sidewalk. To find out whether you are eligible, please call the Cambridge Council on Aging, 617-349-6220 (voice) or 617-349-6050 (TTY).

If you do not qualify for an exemption, the Council on Aging can provide you with a limited list of professional snow removal companies and a list of students who want to earn money by shoveling – you contact the student yourself and negotiate a price.

Does the City provide salt for residents to use for melting ice?

The City provides salt for use by residents in several locations throughout the city. Please be considerate: take only what you need to get through the current snow or ice event.

Locations of Salt Barrels:

Fire Departments

Engine 1, Headquarters on Broadway

Engine 4, Mass Avenue @ Blake Street

Engine 9, Lexington Avenue

Libraries

Concord Avenue, at 245 Concord Avenue

Heritage Branch, at 48 Sixth Street

North Cambridge, at 70 Rindge Avenue

Central Square, at 45 Pearl Street

Other Locations

Area IV Youth Center, at 243 Harvard Street

Sleeper Park, at Cedar & Norris Streets

Cambridge Cemetery, at 76 Coolidge Avenue

Danehy Park Parking Lot, on Sherman Street

Lenny Russell Bridge, at Huron Avenue and Aberdeen Avenue

East End House, at 105 Spring Street

Sacred Heart Church, Otis & 6th Streets

All municipal parking lots

How can I report an icy/unshoveled sidewalk?

You can report the address of unshoveled or icy sidewalks using our online reporting form or by calling the snow hotline at 617-349-4800.

All reports will be inspected by Traffic or Public Works' staff, and a ticket will be issued if the property is found to be in violation of the Snow Ordinance.

How can I find out if the City has declared an emergency parking ban?

When a snow emergency is declared information is available as soon as possible at 617-349-4700, posted on City's homepage, Snow Center, social media accounts, and on 22 CityView.

You can also sign up for CodeRed to receive snow emergency alerts via voice, text or email message.

View a list and map of streets where parking is prohibited during a snow emergency and locations where free parking is available during a declared snow emergency.

How can I find out if school is closed due to snow?

For information about school closings please call the 24-hr recorded school link line at 617-349-6513, check the Cambridge Public School's homepage, or watch 22-CItyView.